Queen honours Australian trooper

Trooper Donaldson met the Queen in a private ceremony at Windsor Castle.

John Stillwell/Pool: Reuters

The Queen has spoken to an Australian soldier who was awarded the Victoria Cross for his bravery in Afghanistan.

In a private ceremony at Windsor Castle, SAS Trooper Mark Donaldson was honoured for his extraordinary achievements in saving the lives of a number of fellow soldiers while under fire from the Taliban.

"It's amazing. It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and probably one of the most amazing things that's ever going to happen," he said.

He says he never imagined he would find himself in Windsor Castle.

"Unless I was doing a tour through the castle I suppose but that would be about it," he said.

Despite the occasion, Trooper Donaldson's thoughts were far away in Afghanistan and with his mates.

"Thinking about it now it's, I don't know, to me like it was back then, it was just what we had to do at the time and it was just a part of the job and that's combat," he said.

"Whatever happens at the time is what you've just got to do to get through it. Like I've always said, I was only one person amongst many that were there that day, and many other things did happen that day so yeah, it was definitely a group effort."

Trooper Donaldson also saved an Afghan interpreter, in the process, running back nearly 100 metres under fire.

"Everyone just had to get out of there and we just wanted to make sure no-one was left behind," he said.

But he says despite exposing himself to that danger and receiving the medal as recognition, there is still work to be done.

"I don't think you should rest on your laurels," he said.

"You're only as good as your last gig so there's always more out there that needs to be done and the next job you get is the next one you've got to focus on, not the last one, so it's always about going forward.

"What the guys and girls over there are doing at the moment is quite amazing and they should definitely have 100 per cent support from everyone that they can, and they need at the time. It's quite amazing the things that they do and go through ... and it's definitely a worthy cause.